Danny Lennon is a football player and coach, who is currently the manager of Clyde. In his playing career he is best known for his spells at Raith Rovers and Partick Thistle. He also experienced international football with the Northern Ireland B side during his spell at Raith. Lennon began his managerial career with Cowdenbeath, the club where he ended his playing days. After a successful period with the Fife club, he was appointed St Mirren manager in 2010. He won the 2012–13 Scottish League Cup with St Mirren, but his contract was not renewed when it expired in 2014. After a caretaker spell in charge of the Scotland under-21s, he managed Alloa Athletic during 2015. After a spell as caretaker manager of Airdrieonians, Lennon was appointed Clyde manager in November 2017.
Playing career
Club
He began his career at Hibernian, before signing for Raith Rovers for £30,000 in 1993. Lennon was part of the Raith squad that won the Scottish League Cup in 1994, but he missed the Final due to injury. Raith qualified for the UEFA Cup thanks to winning the League Cup. Lennon scored in their tie against Bayern Munich, briefly giving Raith a 1–0 lead in the second leg in the Munich Olympic Stadium. After leaving Raith in 1999 he played for Ayr United, Ross County, Partick Thistle, Gretna, Workington and Cowdenbeath. Lennon briefly came out of retirement in 2019, 11 years after he had last played, bringing himself on for Clyde against Celtic colts in a Glasgow Cup match.
International
During his time at Raith Rovers, Lennon won four caps for Northern Ireland B. Lennon was eligible to play for Northern Ireland through his grandmother.
Coaching career
Cowdenbeath
Lennon was appointed as Cowdenbeath manager in 2008, replacing Brian Welsh. Lennon managed the club to two successive promotions despite the club being in significant financial trouble.
St Mirren
Lennon was appointed manager of Scottish Premier League side St Mirren on 7 June 2010, signing a two-year contract. Lennon picked up his first win for St Mirren with a 1–0 win over Hibernian, courtesy of a goal from Craig Dargo. The Buddies finished the season in 11th place, just managing to avoid relegation. Over the summer, Lennon decided to make wholesale changes in the playing and backroom staff and also developing a new formation and philosophy. Lennon's signings included Scottish internationals, Gary Teale from Sheffield Wednesday and Steven Thompson from Burnley. He also added Dutch players Nigel Hasselbaink and Jeroen Tesselaar while replacing long term assistant manager Iain Jenkins with a more experienced coach in Tommy Craig. St Mirren started the season in good form, beating local rivals Greenock Morton 4–2 in the Renfrewshire Cup final and beating Aberdeen in the first home game of the new season. Lennon agreed a new contract with St Mirren in November 2011, keeping him at the club until the summer of 2014. The following season Lennon lead the Buddies to their first ever Scottish League Cup triumph in a 3–2 win over Hearts. It was the club's first major silverware since the Scottish Cup win in 1987, and the fourth major honour in the club's history. After the 2013–14 season was completed, St Mirren decided not to offer Lennon a new contract. In February 2015, Lennon was appointed caretaker manager of the Scotland national under-21 football team. He took charge of one match, a 2–1 victory against Hungary.
Alloa Athletic
Lennon was appointed manager of Alloa Athletic in April 2015. He led the "Wasps" to success in the Scottish Championship play-off final which retained the club's status in the second tier of Scottish football at the end of the 2014–15 season. After gaining just five points from their first sixteen games of the 2015–16 season, Lennon resigned on 7 December 2015.
Airdrieonians
In March 2016, Airdrieonians manager Eddie Wolecki Black suffered a stroke during a match against Scottish League One opponents Cowdenbeath. In order to allow Wolecki Black time to recover from his illness, Lennon was appointed as acting head coach of the North Lanarkshire club until the end of the 2015–16 season.
Clyde
Lennon returned to management with Scottish League Two club Clyde on 13 November 2017. On 7 May 2019 Clyde FC announced that Danny Lennon had agreed terms to remain as Clyde manager for at least an additional two years. He led the Bully Wee to Scottish League One promotion via the play-offs in May 2019.
